Understanding Your EDP Bill (or How Not to Pay €500 for Electricity)

When we first moved to Portugal, we were stoked at the price of things in Lisbon. The cost of living in Lisbon is a mere fraction of what we paid in NYC. Everything here costs about 1/5th of what we used to pay. When we first got our EDP bill for electricity, we were pretty happy. It cost us about €80 per month for our 2-bedroom 100 square meter apartment. Imagine our surprise when we got a bill for almost €500 in January (the above image does not include the taxes which came to around 90 Euros). After I recovered from a minor heart attack, I decided to go to the EDP office which is conveniently located near Marques de Pombal Square. Here’s everything I found out!

How to Understand your Portuguese Electric EDP Bill

Estimated vs. Actual Reading

The first thing we learned is that our bill was based on an estimate of use. Where they got this estimate, I don’t know. We had been in the apartment since May and we never had a bill this high. How can you tell? Click on “Leituras” (that’s readings). Below the red count, you will have one of two phrases:

Leitura Estimada

Leitura Real

If your bill says Leitura Estimada you have a chance. The EDP has estimated your bill. If it says Leitura Real, you’re going to need to head to one of Lisbon’s wine bars for a glass of wine (or two).

What Happens If You Overpaid

The young lady at the EDP office (who was awesome) told us we had two options:

We could have the overage credited to our account.

It could be reimbursed to our bank

She also explained that having it reimbursed meant filling out tons of paperwork and waiting a while, so we just opted to have the credits towards our account. This will take a week or two.

You Pay More if You Use Electricity During Peak Hours

There are three periods that all have different rates attached to them:

Vazio – cheap

Fora de Vazio – more expensive

Cheio – don’t know…if you do, 让我知道在评论.

You Can Enter In Your Own Reading for the EDP Bill

The reason the readings are estimated (according to the EDP office) is that there aren’t enough people to go read the meters. If you use the EDP app, you can update the meter reading yourself this way the meter readings (and in turn your bill) will be accurate. This is great so you don’t have to wait for them to come and do an actual reading.

It’s about a block away from Marques de Pombal. There are a few buildings that say EDP on them. You want the EDP Loja. It’s located at R. Camilo Castelo Branco 32 (on the corner w/ Avenida Duque de Loule). 当你到达那里, make sure to pull a ticket to get help.

Have other questions about understanding your EDP Portuguese Electric bill? Leave it in the comments and we’ll get back to you!

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About Me

My name is Blanca and I run a few startups called FriendsEAT 和 Socialdraft. I travel alot. I have lived in 10+ countries and visited over 30+. Currently I live in Lisboa, 葡萄牙. You can follow my thoughts and experiences on this blog. Hope to hear from you.